The inner part of a rose, known as the “hip,” is a fleshy fruit that contains the seeds of the flower. They were widely used by American Indians and prevented scurvy because of their vitamin C content. Fresh rose hips contain from 0.5 to 1.7 percent vitamin C. The traditional rose hips are from Rosa canina, the dog rose, but many species are useful, including R. rugosa, R. acicularis and R. cinnamonomea.
Nutrition Science News, June 2000, vol. 5
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